Memories of Brisbane as England’s hard work on opening day is ruined by innings-turning run-out

George Dobell at Edgbaston01-Aug-2018Maybe it was fitting that on Yorkshire Day, a mix-up between two Yorkshiremen should undermine England’s efforts.It’s not as if the county’s history – particularly the cricketing part of the county – has been free of fighting and fall-outs. Even the last few days have seen two former Yorkshire captains falling over themselves to criticise a current Yorkshire player who has seemingly fallen out of love with some aspects of the club.To be fair to the club, they continue to produce fine players including three members of this England side. But from the moment before play when Colin Graves, a former Yorkshire chairman who now holds the same role at the ECB, dropped a trophy presented to him to commemorate England’s 1,000th Test – a metaphor for his period at the helm if ever we’ve seen one – there was a sense that this may not be their day.That’s not to take anything away from India’s performance. The R Ashwin delivery that bowled Alastair Cook was a thing of museum-quality beauty and the direct hit throw from Virat Kohli to end Joe Root’s innings was a moment of brilliance.But both teams will know that England failed to take advantage of a blameless pitch and an under-par performance by three of India’s four seamers. And both teams will know that England’s first-innings score has put them on the back foot in this match. India now have a wonderful opportunity to build a match-defining first-innings total.There was, no doubt, an element of bad luck about Root’s dismissal. And, of course, an element of great skill from Kohli. Running back from midwicket, he managed to pick up and throw with accuracy and power despite being off-balance as he did so; a piece of athleticism that provides some reward for years of eating well and training hard. Such moments may look easy, but they come only through great effort.But it was an unnecessary second run. An unnecessary chance. And Root had hesitated twice – once when setting off for the first and once when turning for the second – in trying to complete the run. The delays were tiny, but they proved crucial. He will know he played a huge part in his own downfall.Joe Root’s dive couldn’t save him from being run out•Getty ImagesMaybe Jonny Bairstow was a little at fault, too. His running between the wickets is, generally, exceptionally good and that ability to steal singles and turn ones into twos is precious. But, unless he finds himself running with either a cheetah or Usain Bolt, he may need to consider that his partner cannot always keep up with his speed between the wickets. Root could have said ‘no’ but Bairstow could also have settled for the single and avoided the risk.It was a costly error. Had they settled on that single, England would have been 216 for 3 with two batsmen set and a total of 400 on the horizon. As it was, they lost six wickets for 67 runs and may well struggle to reach 300.There were memories here of Brisbane in November. It could easily be forgotten now but, for a few heady hours at the start of the Ashes, England seemed well capable of dealing with Australia’s bowling attack. James Vince was going nicely on 83 and England, on 145 for 2 during the first afternoon of the series, were again on course for a total of around 400.Instead, it was to prove the high watermark for England in the series. Vince’s attempt at a sharp single was beaten by Nathan Lyon’s direct hit from the covers. As a result, Vince was unable to make the century that would have justified his selection and established England’s foothold in the series. None of England’s subsequent batsmen were able to settle in the way Vince had and Australia, seizing the moment, took the last eight wickets for the addition of just 157 runs. That moment might well have marked a turning point – albeit a very early one – in both the series and Vince’s Test career.Coincidence? Maybe. These things happen, of course, and nobody would want to see England take an entirely risk-free approach to their cricket.But it might also hint at a mentality that has dogged England for some time. An impatience. A sense of aggression that fails to appreciate how much time Test cricket allows for batsmen to build their innings through denial as much as aggression. A lack of defensive ruthlessness that would allow them to seize those key moments.It’s not easy to explain Root’s poor conversion rate from 50 to 100. It would be simplistic to blame concentration and disingenuous to blame bad luck. It has happened too often for that. And while it would be nice to think it is part of a convoluted protest against the ECB’s strategy – he really does seem to hate The 100 figure, after all – that is probably wishful thinking.Whatever the reason – and, again, a lack of ruthlessness may lie at the heart of the issue – it is hurting England. However admirable his ability to reach fifty – he has made a half-century (at least) in all 12 of the Tests he has played against India, which is remarkable – the seeming inability to convert those starts into match-shaping contributions means England are lacking the impact they require from their best player.None of Root’s last 11 half-centuries have been converted and he has now played 20 innings without a century. England – this England, with a fragile top-order and an exciting but unpredictable middle-order – need more from him. Ten of his 13 Test centuries have come as part of England Test victories; they have drawn the other three. It’s not hard to work out the significance of his contributions.He could learn from Kohli. Despite not batting, despite not bowling, Kohli still produced the mic-drop moment that shaped the game on the first day of this series. Root had every opportunity to do likewise but gifted that chance to his rival. As captain and his side’s best batsman, that will really sting.